IN THE HIGH COURT OF MALAWI
MZUZU DISTRICT REGISTRY
BETWEEN:
AND
THE ATTORNEY GENERAL (RUMPHI POLICE)……………….DEFENDANT
CORAM: MRS I
C KAMANGA, SENIOR DEPUTY REGISTRY.
This
matter comes for assessment of damages following a default judgement that was
entered in the plaintiffs favour on 2nd
October 2000. The defendants were duly
served with a notice of the hearing of the assessment. They however, never put up any appearance
nor gave reasons for absence. The
plaintiff’s testimony is thereby uncontested.
One
witness the first plaintiff testified.
He told the court that in June 1999 he went to Rumphi Boma, at St
Patricks Hospital to see his sister who was admitted at the hospital. After visiting his sister, he left the
hospital at around 15:30 pm. He passed
by Mwangonda Bottle store with a friend.
As he was in the bottle store, he heard some gunshots. The plaintiff and some people in the bottle
store went out to see what was happening.
He saw policemen coming in their direction. As he was going back into the bottle store, he realized that he
had been shot in the leg. Then some
policemen came into the bottle store and took him to the hospital where he was
admitted for three and a half months.
The plaintiff tendered a medical report which states that he had
sustained “multiple gunshot wounds with open fracture of the right femur”. The medical report also indicates how the
injuries were treated. The treatment
reads as follows:”
1
Pin fractions
2
Wound dressing –removed remained bullets
3
Antibiotics”
Also the
general observations, the doctor observed as follows: “Patient was in pain following gunshot fracture. The right femur has resulted to chronic
osternjecitisi limping when walking; pus discharge from the wound.” The doctor further observed that the long
term effects of the injuries is that he has developed chronic osteomjelitis
(infection of the bone) and he now has an incapacity assessed at 50%. He now walks with a limp and cannot run.
The
plaintiff complained that he was in plaster of paris and used crutches for a
further five months after the discharge from hospital. He also said that the wound could not heal
and he has spent a lot of money seeking medical assistance but he has been
advised that it will take years before the wound can heal.
As noted,
the plaintiff’s evidence is uncontested.
It is unfortunate that the police service personnel, without justifiable
cause, poured their bullets on innocent civilians at a public place. Such action on the part of the defendants
cannot be condoned. I therefore award
the plaintiff K450,000.00 (Four Hundred and Fifty thousand kwacha) the same
being aggravated damages for the injuries sustained at the defendant’s
instance. I also award the plaintiff
costs for this action.
MADE IN
CHAMBERS this 30th day of September, 2003.